Ukraine is creating the main structure for the first stage of American rocket vehicle system Antares

Collaborative launch of a carrier booster between Ukraine and the USA is scheduled for this August according to the press service of State Space Agency of Ukraine.

June 1 Hot Fire Test of a modernized carrier booster Antares was successful.

“Ukraine is cooperating with an American company Orbital АТК in the frameworks of carrier booster Antares project. Hot fire test of a modernized booster ended in June, there are no remarks on first stage systems and units operation. The first launch of a carrier booster in a new configuration is scheduled for August 2016,” – Lyubomyr Sabadosh, the Head of State Space Agency of Ukraine, reported.

It is also reported that Antares project started in 2013. Ukraine works on a basic construction of the first stage of the American carrier booster Antares, designed for delivering cargoes to International Space Station from the space-vehicle launching site Wallops in the USA. There were five launches so far, four of them were successful.

“In 2014 a carrier booster collapsed a few seconds after the start due to engine problems. The project was suspended. American part took the decision to replace the engine of Russian production,” – the government agency mentioned.

During last 6 months Ukrainian expertise have been working on first stage modernization, adapting it to the new engine. Hereby, the first launch of a carrier booster in a new configuration is scheduled for August 2016.

As a reminder – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the USA Valeriy Chaly noted that Ukraine now is in top ten space states due to its cooperation with the United States of America.